The report that England’s capital, London, will today be the centre of global attention as the world bids a final farewell to the late Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning British monarch is one of the leading stories in the Ghanaian press on Monday.
The Ghanaian Times reports that England’s capital, London, will today be the centre of global attention as the world bids a final farewell to the late Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning British monarch.
After days of lying-in-state, having been moved from Balmoral to Edinburgh, the body of the late Queen Elizabeth II, will be at Westminster Abbey, in London for a burial service, then to Windsor Castle for a private burial.
The state funeral is expected to be a somber, yet royal ceremony in line with a plan made years ago, and one never seen before since the last state funeral of British former prime minister, Winston Churchill, about six decades years ago.
The funeral will be one of the biggest gatherings of royalty and politicians hosted in the UK for decades, as about 2,000 guests including 500 heads of state and foreign dignitaries have been invited to join.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Asantehene, OtumfuoOsei Tutu II, are expected to join world leaders to pay their last respects to the Queen.
The final leg of the late Monarch’s final journey to eternal rest would begin at 8am this morning when filling past of the coffin at Westminster Hall in the heart of London will come to an end.
The newspaper says that Ghana’s flagship agriculture intervention programme, Planting for Food and Jobs, has received worldwide acclamation as key strategy to improving food security and sustaining the incomes of smallholder farmers developing economies, at the just ended African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) 2022 Summit in Kigali, Rwanda.
Consequently, Zambia’s Minister of Agriculture, Reuben Phiri Mtolo, has expressed desire to learn from Ghana’s food system transformation success story, a statement copied the Ghanaian Times said.
This was when the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, joined a high-level panel of three countries: Ghana, Malawi and Rwanda to highlight progress in the agriculture sector in each country, and to woo international investment into Ghana’s agriculture sector.
Although amidst implementation challenges, the PFJ especially the crop module has reportedly increased maize and rice production levels 40 per cent higher than it would have been in the absence of the programme, resulting in significant increase in food and calories by smallholder farmers across the country.
The minister was invited for the forum, September 5-9, as a guest speaker for three key sessions: Agribusiness Deal Room Launch, Leadership, Finance & Accountability: Advancing National Food Systems’ Pathways; and Ministerial Roundtable – Country Actions to Progress Pathways for Food Systems Transformation.
Additionally, the minister held a high-level bilateral engagements on the sidelines of the summit with some selected representatives from both private and public institutions, with the objective to showcase Ghana’s progress in food systems transformation, and broker strategic partnerships for mutual benefits.
Dr Akoto told the AGRF, the world’s premier forum for African food systems and agriculture that brought together agricultural stakeholders, to take practical actions and share lessons to advance African food systems and agriculture that Ghana’s agriculture sector had improved over the past seven years.
“Planting for Food and Agriculture has driven agriculture productivity in key grains whilst enhancing farm employment,” he said adding that “intercropping of trees, helps to drive soil health as well as improve nutrition,”
He emphasized that Ghana’s agriculture systems took cognizance of environmental and social concerns as “we are applying regenerative agriculture approaches to tackle climate change.”
The Ghanaian Times also reports that the Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has rallied investors at the just ended Ghana-Canada Investment Summit (GCIS) to consider the huge opportunities in the country and direct their investment here for higher returns.
Addressing the diaspora investor community at the 6-day summit organised by the Ghana Investment Promotion (GIPC) in Toronto, Canada on Thursday September 15, 2022, the Minister said the stable political atmosphere, coupled with the vast investment opportunities in the country, makes Ghana an investment destination of choice than its counterparts on the continent.
“As the host of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA), Ghana has been placed in pole position to lead Africa’s economic and financial renaissance. This means that when you come back and do business in Ghana, and with Ghana, you are only opening your own door to access the entire African continent. I want to encourage you to come and invest in Ghana. We look forward to seeing you soon,” he said.
Mr Oppong Nkrumah, who is also Member of Parliament for Ofoase/Ayirebi, described the country as a fertile ground for investment where businesses thrive due to its stable economic atmosphere urging prospective investors, especially from Canada, to consider Ghana as the gateway to a wider African market.
He said Ghana has a wide range of investment vehicles available for every investor class which offer higher returns than other African countries. Citing the high returns in investment in equity markets and the high yields on Government of Ghana bonds, the Minister assured the diaspora investor community of guaranteed returns should they choose Ghana as their investment destination.
Further, Mr Oppong Nkrumah called on the diaspora investors to invest in the Ghanaian economy because as Ghanaians in the diaspora, they have a crucial role to play towards the growth and development of the country.
The Ghana-Canada Investment Summit brought together delegates from the international investor community especially from Canada, venture capitalists and private equity fund managers amongst others for in-depth discussions and exploration of viable investment opportunities within various sectors of the Ghanaian economy. It was also aimed at matching diaspora, Canadian investors and local entrepreneurs and create awareness of the potential of Diaspora Direct Investment while increasing trade between Ghana and Canada.
The Graphic says that the Development Bank Ghana (DBG) has partnered the Ghana National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GNCCI) to equip small and medium enterprises (SMEs) with the necessary expertise to reduce the risks in their operations that make it difficult for them to access funding.
The partnership allows the bank and the chamber to undertake capacity-building workshops for the about 1,000 SMEs nationwide on areas that will enhance their ability to access funding from DBG’s partner financial institutions (PFIs) as well as build sustainable businesses.
The first phase of the exercise took place in Accra and Koforidua last week, where more than 190 institutions participated.
A statement from the bank said the joint business skills development programme was on the theme: “Empowering SMEs with the requisite business skills for sustainable growth and resilience.”
It said similar capacity-building workshops were scheduled from September 12 onwards in Tarkwa and Takoradi in the Western Region and Cape Coast in the Central Region.
It said the initiative formed part of DBG’s commitment to fostering strong partnerships to build the capacity for SMEs.
The statement said the maiden edition in Accra hosted 94 SMEs whose businesses were spread across DBG’s primary focus sectors – agribusiness, information technology, manufacturing and high-value services.
It said within those sectors, women and youth-led businesses formed an important part of the bank’s focus.
The Deputy CEO of DBG, Michael Mensah-Baah, reiterated the bank’s commitment to being an integral part of the solution to foster SME growth in the economy.
GIK/APA